Peace

There once was a King who offered a prize to the artist who would paint the best picture of peace. Many artists tried. The King looked at all the pictures, but there were only two he really liked and he had to choose between them.

One picture was of a calm lake. The lake was a perfect mirror, for peaceful towering mountains were all around it. Overhead was a blue sky with fluffy white clouds. All who saw this picture thought that it was a perfect picture of peace.

The other picture had mountains too. But these were rugged and bare. Above was an angry sky from which rain fell and in which lightening played. Down the side of the mountain tumbled a foaming waterfall. This did not look peaceful at all. But when the King looked, he saw behind the waterfall a tiny bush growing in a crack in the rock. In the bush a mother bird had built her nest. There, in the midst of the rush of angry water, sat the mother bird on her nest... perfect peace.

Which picture do you think won the prize?

The King chose the second picture. Do you know why? "Because," explained the King, "peace does not mean to be in a place where there is no noise, trouble, or hard work. Peace means to be in the midst of all those things and still be calm in your heart. That is the real meaning of peace."

If there were a hurricane where you are right now, things would be spinning, whirling, and flying around. But if you could get to the center of the hurricane there would be absolute quiet and calm. This is a good analogy for life.

When your life is spinning, whirling, and flying around, GET TO YOUR CENTER...and we do that by going within to the presence of God within each of us. We connect with our Source and there is absolute quiet and calm.

When a storm blows through our world, most of us panic and look for cover. It's as if our minds go numb. We may feel lost, isolated, separated from God. So how can we survive life's storms?

Remember to get to the center...that's where the peace, the quiet, and the calm are. That's where Spirit is. Take a deep breath and connect to Spirit. You'll be safe as the storm passes.

I'm holding the high watch!
Rev. Donna

A Spiritual Faith-Lift

Love yourself--accept yourself--forgive yourself--and be good to yourself, because without you the rest of us are without a source of many wonderful things.
~Leo F. Buscaglia


When we continually beat ourselves up for a mistake we made, we're just feeding our ego. In order to move on in our lives, we have to forgive ourselves.

OK, we said something stupid, we hurt someone's feelings, we disappointed a friend. What good does it do to keep reliving it? The best thing to do is to make what amends you can make, and think about how you can do it different next time.

Most people hold on to their guilt because they have the misconception that our depth of guilt reflects our level of love and remorse. But the truth is...when we hold on to our guilty feelings, we commit the ultimate betrayal: abandoning ourselves.

By letting go of self-hate and stopping the replaying of the event in your mind, our ego has nothing to chew on and we remove the judgment from the action.

Let yourself off the hook today.

I'm holding the high watch!
Donna

Cleaning Day

This morning I cleaned out my home office. I re-organized and rearranged. I also threw away a lot of "stuff!" Some of that "stuff" had sat in my office for weeks or months because I thought it was very important...and yet today, it had little or no value for me.

Cleaning and straightening this room made me feel lighter in body and mind and spirit. It was a relief...whew, no more piles of paper and books and folders staring at me saying, "do something!"

Well, this made me think of spiritual house-cleaning. Don't we all have some old thoughts and habits that need to be tossed out? Just like my important things that seemed so valuable in the past, but today are only taking up room in our minds. They may be the cause of our confused thinking and they may be blocking our progress.

How about taking out the garbage in our mind and spirits that gets in the way? It is the clutter and accumulated junk that makes our minds, spirits, and our homes crowded and unpleasant places.

Get rid of that garbage! Enlighten up!

I'm holding the high watch!
Donna

What goes around, comes around, doesn't it?

"Life is a perpetual instruction in cause and effect."
~Ralph Waldo Emerson

Someone close to you is acting like a real jerk and you want to smack them. But you are a "spiritual" person, so you sit back and say with a nodding head, "What goes around, comes around."

When we wish revenge for someone, or we're smug and content because we know they'll get theirs in the end, we are acting as channels of judgment. And just as a cold cup becomes scalding when you add red-hot coffee, we too take on the energy of the judgment we wish upon others. No matter how perfect we think we are in comparison to that person, trust me, we've get our own negative files we'd rather not have reviewed.

That's why we always want to be on the side of mercy and in the frame of helping the situation, not contributing to the problem.

Today, focus on your ex-husband, your ex-employer, your ex-friend, or anyone you've been waiting for cause and effect to pounce on, and ask for mercy for them. Believe me, you need it.

Donna

Today's Potpourri...

Affirm: I am increasingly abundant, prosperous and successful. My cup runneth over with riches, wealth and every good gift of a generous God. I am designed to joyfully receive countless untold blessings and bounty through my relaxed willingness to receive. (If you hesitate to make this affirmation, take the opportunity to look closely at what obstacles lie within you - and to remove them.)

Eggplant Lasagna

This eggplant uses no wheat and no pasta noodles of any kind. The eggplant is used in place of the noodles.





1 1b eggplant


2 Tbsp olive oil


3 cloves garlic, minced


2 ribs celery, minced


2 sprigs parsley


6 mushrooms, sliced


Salt to taste


2 cup tomato sauce


2 eggs, beaten


1 ¼ cup cottage cheese


1/3 pkg. grated jack cheese (1-½ cups)


½ cup grated Parmesan cheese


1 Tbsp sweet basil


1 Tbsp oregano





There are 3 basic items that make up this dish (A) the eggplant, (B)the cheese-egg mixture and (C) the vegetables in sauce





Preparing the items


(A) Peel, slice and steam eggplant until tender, set aside


(B) Beat eggs, and combine cheeses and eggs in a bowl, set aside(


C) Sauté the mushrooms in olive oil





Add spices (garlic, parsley, basil, oregano, celery) And tomato sauce. Simmer on low heat for an hour.





Assembling the Lasagna


A: Use 1/3 eggplant cover the bottom of the baking dish


B: Use 1/3 of the cheese mixture and cover evenly


C: Use the vegetables in sauce spread over entire bottom of dish





A: Use 1/3 eggplant cover and layer on top


B: Layer with 1/3 of the cheese mixture


C: Layer with remaining vegetables in sauce,





A: Place a layer of eggplant on top


B: Evenly top with the last 1/3 of the cheese mixture





Bake uncovered in 8 x 8-inch baking dish at 325 F degrees for 1 to 1½ hours.

You are a Divine Child of God with Unlimited Potential.

You are meant to live all that you desire.

You were born worthy, lovable, deserving, and complete.

This is the only vision that I hold for you.

Monday musings...

Row, row, row your boat
Gently down the stream.
Merrily, merrily, merrily, merrily.
Life is but a dream.
***************************
This little ditty is a wonderful spiritual metaphor...a great metaphysical teaching tool.

"Row, row, row your boat,
Gently down the stream"

Keep on keeping on. Keep moving in the direction of your good. If you don't pay attention to the direction you're traveling, the stream of life may be turbulant. Be gentle, don't struggle as you go. Let God choose the direction...the waters will be still.

"Merrily, merrily, merrily, merrily,
Life is but a dream."

Be happy...be joyful. Know that happiness and joy are choices we make...not something that happens to us. Choose then to make your daydreams positive and affirmative. Even if you come to the rapids or the rocks, it will be smooth sailing.

Enjoy the ride.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

More relationship tips!! Some ideas to keep the communication lines open.

Appreciations: Share five things you appreciate about each other. These can range from the simple "I like your smile" to the sublime "I like it that you were able to be so low key after I forgot to pick you up last night." Appreciations can be a nice surprise to realize just how much our friends/family members/partners notice and appreciate.

Wishes, Hopes, and Dreams: Describe three things you hope for in the long run ("I hope to complete a marathon by the time I'm 40") and in the short run ("This week-end I'd like to spend a half-hour alone with my dad when he visits.") Afriend/family member/partner who understands your dreams is able to help them happen. Remember that hopes change as we go along and it's important to keep each other current.

New Information: We often forget to update our friends/family members/partner about a change in plans or circumstances. We tell people at work and think we've told others. Make the updates a ritual. Information like "The dentist said Bobby won't need braces after all" or "I'll have to be in San Francisco an extra day" is crucial to staying in-synch and feeling connected.

Puzzles: Clear-up big or little mysteries before they become suspicions, false assumptions, or resentments. Most "puzzles" have simple explanations. "You promised you'd water the tomatoes before you left this morning. What happened?" "The water was turned off. Was it back on when you got up?" You have to ask!

Complaints with Request for Change: Get in the habit of saying what you want rather than what you don't want. Describe a specific behavior that bothers you and explain how you'd like it done. Instead of "I get furious when you call and don't leave a message," say, "When you call and get the machine, please don't say 'It's me' and hang up. Say why you're calling, and when you'll call back, or be home, or whatever it was you were calling to tell me." If you forget to say why you were calling. Call back. Even if it's long distance. It's an inexpensive investment in your relationships.

Prayer for Our Church Family

God's order and harmony are established in each of us and in Unity of the Hills.
God's wisdom guides us in all our relationships and interactions with each other.
Renewed trust, loving communication and forgiving love, now heal any discord or misunderstandings.
We respect the feelings and needs of ourselves and each other as we cooperate in a space of peace and harmony.

And it is so!

Amen and amen and amen!

Make this a beautiful day!
Donna


Remember this...
You are a Divine Child of God with Unlimited Potential.
You are meant to live all that you desire.
You were born worthy, lovable, deserving, and complete.
This is the only vision that I hold for you.